This is crazy already ('old' lens prices)

[BrianShaw]

No, its not stupid.

You are at best too hopeful, at worst a cheapskate. Not that there's anything wrong with being a cheapskate, I'm one m'self. You hoped to, um, steal the filters but the seller priced them right. Why are you surprised or disappointed?

I like to, um, steal items offered on eBay too. But when I'm outbid on an item I don't cry foul, I accept that someone wanted it more than I did.

I do the same kind of e-gambling, but mostly on items I'd like but don't mind losing. I sometimes even bid too much if it is an item I just can't live without and finding it elsewhere will take too much time/effort.

Last week I got a GREAT deal on some hard-to-get filters. But it was pure luck that there were no other bidders. The week before I got a great deal on a "parts" camera. Usually there is a fairly active market on these items.

When I lose these kind of gambles and have to pay a "fair" price (or too much), I grumble a bit too. But like Ash, it's myself I call 'stupid' not the other bidders.

That "cheapskate" gene is sure difficult to evolve beyond, isn't it?

[Ash]

I dont think there's anything wrong with being a cheapskate.

Why pay more than you have to for something?? We'd never have what we wanted if we paid a 'fair' price on everything, and the second hand market wouldn't exist. Marketplace competition is all about cheapskates, because people go for the lowest price.

If you see, like in Swindon, two camera shops side by side, and one has a lens for £50 less brand new than the other does, you are going to be hard pushed to pay more than you have to. You also have to grab that bargain while it's there. The next person will have to pay the £50 more in the other shop.

Does that make sense?

[BrianShaw]

Yes... absolutely and most indubidibly YES! There's nothing wrong with being a cheapskate!!

[Dan Fromm]

I dont think there's anything wrong with being a cheapskate.

Why pay more than you have to for something?? We'd never have what we wanted if we paid a 'fair' price on everything, and the second hand market wouldn't exist. Marketplace competition is all about cheapskates, because people go for the lowest price.

If you see, like in Swindon, two camera shops side by side, and one has a lens for £50 less brand new than the other does, you are going to be hard pushed to pay more than you have to. You also have to grab that bargain while it's there. The next person will have to pay the £50 more in the other shop.

Does that make sense?

This makes good sense. As I said, I'm a cheapskate myself.

But I don't wail and grumble that life is unfair when I'm outbid on eBay. Doing that makes no sense at all.

[Dan Dozer]

Steve,

I've found that you have to be patient these days.

No one else read the rest of this post because I don't want to be bidding against the rest of you on future lots.

Look around in sections other than the one for camera lenses. I've found several items in sections that aren't even related to photography. About 2 months ago, I picked up a big brass 10 x 12 lens for $28 that was in near mint condition that was in the section for telescopes. The seller (obviously not a photographer) thought it was a lens for a telescope rather than a camera. Just earlier this week, there were two brass lenses that, while they did sell in the last seconds, were both relatively inexpensive (item #'s 320005951287 and 330006338874). If you want to start picking these things up, you also probably need to start bidding in the last minute like other people out there.

Good luck and don't give up trying.

[BrianShaw]

I didn't see a thing!

Actually, the best deals I've found are on items where the seller either didn't know what it was or simply didn't write a very good title/description -- including silly mis-spellings, like 'Hassleblad' versus 'Hasselblad'. (Oh, dear, I just let one of my secrets out!). I, too, live for the thrill of a bargain and I don't feel a bit ashamed of going out of my way to look for good stuff that isn't well marketed.

[Ole Tjugen]

All,
For the last couple of months, I've been on the old brass lens hunt. During this time, I've read most likely EVERY post on the subject to be found on this site, APUG, and perhaps the rest of the english and german speaking internet. ALL of these places say that these magic lantern lenses, these unknown brass beasts, these unmarked oddities go for pennies to $30 or so dollars....Heh, right...

I just realised we've been reading the same forums and searching the same "branches" of ebay.

So many of "ALL" those posts you've read are likely to be mine. A few of my "brass cannons" have cost more han $30, most of them have cost less. Of the ones that have cost less, one at least cost me four times as much as the winning bid in shipping. But I was prepared for that - it was 3 kg of Petzval...

Sorry...

[Jerry Flynn]

I'm not surprised that lens prices get bid up. Notwithstanding Ebay skullduggery, it would seem to be simple supply and demand. The demand is high because it appears that many photo-ists are obsessed with lenses. When you log into this forum, just check out how many people are reading threads in the lens section vs. any other section in the forum.

[Ash]

This is true. I get serious GAS (gear acquisition syndrome) when it comes to these things. I now have 4 lenses I can use on my half plate camera, 2 are near-identical lenses. I only really need one!

[Ole Tjugen]

That's not "serious GAS". For a while I had two 13x18cm plate cameras - one bought to get the iris lensboard, one to get the Vade Mecum lens set. Then I decided that the first one was so nice I wanted to keep it in working order, and got another iris. But that was too large for the camera I wanted to use it on, so I got three more...

I managed to sell the second one at least, including one of my (then) eight 210mm barrel lenses. By sheer luck I've failed to get any more 210mm barrel lenses since then, although I've bought a 210/6.1 Xenar for use with my 4x5" camera. I only have one camera in that size, down from 2...

At the moment I've got 9 150mm lenses ranging from an E. Busch WA Aplanat to a Docter Germinar-W through a Zeiss Amatar and a Voigtländer Apo-Lanthar, and including oddities like a 150/3.5 Xenar Typ D.

I also happen to have 3 6.5x9cm and 4 9x12cm plate cameras, at least one of each size bought only for the plate holders (but still in good shape, it's just that camera with holders tend to be cheaper than three holders of known make).

That's "serious GAS".